Wind Direction Forwardby Daphne Evans 28 Aug, 2012 in Science Communications
Wind-Energy - A Revitalized Pursuit was issued by Sandia Laboratories in 1974. This report discusses challenges of the “energy crunch” and the U.S. goal to maintain high standards of living by developing “promising energy sources that are (1) vast, (2) environmentally acceptable, and (3) economically competitive.” The authors felt that wind energy was a feasible solution. Devising ways to efficiently harness the wind is an ongoing pursuit of scientists around the world. The wind mills of the past have evolved into high-tech wind turbines, governed by complex computer systems. These control systems continue to be more and more important as turbines become larger, with more flexible and lighter components. Advanced controls are necessary to prevent damage and possible malfunction of the turbines. Facilities for testing new control systems at the National Wind Technology Center are described in the fact sheet Advanced Wind Turbine Controls Reduce Loads. Read more about wind energy in the DOE Science Showcase: Wind Power and watch Energy 101: Wind Turbines (YouTube) to learn about the fundamentals and future of wind energy.
Daphne Evans, OSTI Staff Related Topics: energy, Sandia, showcase, wind Read more... |
Wind Turbines and Wear and Tearby Kathy Chambers 20 Aug, 2012 in Products and Content
A modern wind turbine has more than 8,000 component parts that must withstand the wear and tear of wind stresses. DOE researchers and stakeholders have been working hard to predict and eliminate wind stress related barriers and extend the lifespan of wind turbines. Working on a paper on this subject? OSTI can save you wear and tear by providing web tools that eliminate the need to search through database after database to find the research you need. For example, if you use DOE’s Science Accelerator, you could search through 11 DOE databases, and in about 10 seconds or less, retrieve hundreds of documents about the use of simulations to understand wind turbine shear stress. You could learn about wind turbine gearbox reliability in Energy Citations Database, a database that contains research results submitted by DOE offices, national labs and technology centers and their contractors. Or you have the option to search the resources of 13 government agencies in Science.gov to instantly find thousands of records... Related Topics: osti.gov, Science Accelerator, Science.gov, wind Read more... |
Energy in the Forecastby Daphne Evans 13 Aug, 2012 in Science Communications
If you can accurately predict the weather, you may be able to predict how much energy can be generated from wind turbines. That was one objective of the “Great Plains Wind Energy Transmission Development Project,” completed in 2011, to “develop a wind energy forecast system, and demonstrate its efficacy in scheduling power output from wind farms in the Great Plains.” The forecasting system described in the report was comprised of three elements, a software component using various weather prediction models, a wind energy output model, and a graphical user interface. Detailed wind resource maps, provided by the Wind Powering America Initiative, are another tool for demonstrating wind resource potential and removing some of the guesswork from wind energy prediction. You can read more about the wind, weather, and turbine dynamics in OSTI Collections: Wind Power, and link to many other research reports delving deeper into a range of topics related to wind energy. Daphne Evans, OSTI Staff Related Topics: energy, maps, OSTI collections, weather, wind, wind collection Read more... |
DOE’s Solar Decathlon – Building the Futureby Kate Bannan 26 Sep, 2011 in Science Communications
The Solar Decathlon is being held September 23–October 2, 2011, at the National Mall’s West Potomac Park in Washington, DC. The event is free and open to the public. Related Topics: biomass, collegiate, decathlon, DOE Green Energy, energy, geothermal, green, hydro, power, solar, synthetic fuels, wave, wind Read more... |
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